Former Minister of Power and Steel, Olu Agunloye, has been released from Kuje Correctional Centre after meeting bail terms.
The release was confirmed on Friday evening, around 5:30 pm, by the spokesperson for the Federal Capital Territory Command of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Adamu Duza.
Agunloye had been ordered into remand at Kuje Custodial Centre by a Federal High Court in Abuja in connection to a $6 billion Mambilla hydropower contract. The charges were brought forth by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), accusing Agunloye of unlawfully awarding the contract during his tenure as a minister.
Having served as a minister between 1999 and 2003, Agunloye faced allegations of approving the Mambilla hydroelectric power station contract without proper budgetary provision or approval. The EFCC also claimed that he illicitly received N3.6 million in kickbacks from the company awarded the contract.
Agunloye pleaded not guilty to these charges during his court appearance, and the judge remanded him in Kuje prison until the determination of his bail application.